Line-clutch.



W. KECKEISSBN & F. J. REILLY.

LINE CLUTCH.

APPLICATION FILED Nov. 4, 1913.

1 l 22,600. l Patented :Dea 29, 1914.

n a i @IMEI UN 1TED STATES PATENT @hllhllQEo WILLIAM KECKEISSEN ANDFRANK J. REILLY, OF NEWARK, NEVI JERSEY.

LINE-CLUTCH.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dee. 29, 12%141.,

To all 107mm it may concern Be it known that we, WILLIAM Knorrnis- SENand FRANK J. REILLY, both citizens of the United States, and residentsof Newark, county of Essex, and State of New Jersey, have invented acertain new and useful 1mprovement in Line-Clutches, of which thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact specification.

This invention relates to a class of devices adapted to be usedespecially in conjunction with clothes lines.

Our invention has for its object primarily to provide a clutch designedto be employed for detachably connecting the ends of a line in a mannerwhereby the line especially when used for. suspending clothes therefrom,may be readily shortened or lengthened by "adjusting the position of theclutch, and

wherein is provided a substantially U- shaped supporting member throughwhich the ends of the line are guided. Removably pivoted to thesupporting member is a gripf ping element, or tongue to which one endor" the line is secured against movement, and said gripping element isadapted to be swung to coperate with the supporting member for engagingthe other end portion of the line whereby the force of the pull on theline will tend to tighten the engagement of these parts therewith toprevent the line from slipping.

Another object of the invention is to provide laterally lugs upon thegripping element for permitting the clutch to be conveniently disengagedfrom the line as occa sion requires; and a further object of theinvention is to provide a form of clutch which is susceptible of beingmade in various sizes so as to combine great strength and durability.

A practical embodiment of the invention is represented in theaccompanying drawing forming a part of this specicatio'n in whichsimilar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all theviews, the said invention being more fully described hereinafter, andthen pointed out in the claims at the end of the description.

In the drawing, Figure l is a side eleva` tion of one form of clutchembodying our invention as employed for detachably connecting the endsof a line. Fig. 2 is a top plan of the clutch, and Fig. 3 is afragmentary sectional view taken on the line II-II of Fig. 1.

The clutch has a supporting member 10 which is substantially ll-sliapedto provide two spaced parallel arms 1A and 12, and a curved bridgingpart, as 13, at one end of the arms. lntegrally formed with the lowerportion of the bridge 13 and also integral with the contiguous parts ofthe arms 11 and 12 of the supporting member is a substantially U-shapeddepending flange 11. The other end portions of the arms 11 and 12 arecorrespondingly curved downwardly and bent longitudinally to providespaced parallel extensions 15 and 16 which are dis posed on differentrelative planes to the arms. Between the arms 11 and 12 at the juncturethereof with the extensions 15 and 16 is a pin, or stop 17, and alsobetween said extensions adjacent to their free ends is provided a pin18.

Coperating with the supporting member 10 for detachably and adjustablyconnecting the ends of a line together, a grip ping element, or tongue,19, is provided. rllhe gripping element, or tongue 19 has a bar 20 whichis preferably of a width slightly less than the width of the spacebetween the arms 11 and 12, and between the extensions 15 and 1G, andintermediate the ends of said bar is an aperture 21. On one end of thebar 2O is a hook, as which is guided over the pin 18 between the eX-tensions 15 and 16 for removably attaching the gripping element, tongue19 to the supporting me. ber 10 to permit the tongue to be swungdownwardly and upwardly with relation to the supporting member. Theopposite end of the bar 2O extends between the U-shaped depending flange14 of the supporting member 10 when the tongue is swung toward saidmember, and the central part of this end of the bar is cut-out to`provide two teeth .23 24C dapted to be moved into close proximity to theinner surface of the icl-shaped depending flange 11 of the supportingmember. Projecting upwardly from the bar 20 is a 'linger 25 which isguided inwardly and outwardly from between the arms 11 and 12 of thesupporting member when the bar is accordingly swung upon its pivot, andsaid finger is spaced from the hook a suiiicient distance so that thepin or stop 17 of the supporting member will pass therebetween forlimiting the upward movement of the bar. 1n order to permit the tongue19 to be conveniently swung to open or closed positions i i Copies ofthis patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the fWashington, D. G. l

relatively to the supporting member, exn tending laterally in oppositedirections from the bar 2O are two lugs 26 and 27.

ln employing the clutch for detachably and adjustably connecting the endportions et a line, one end of the line, as 28, is guided between thearms 11 and 12 of the supporting member, and the line is passed over thelinger 25 ot the tongue 19. lThe end portion 2S oli the line is thendirected through the aperture 21 oi' the bar 20, and a knot is tied uponthis end of the line to hold it against displacement to the bar 20. Theother end portion, as 29, of the line is passed downwardly between thearms 11 and 12 and through the U-shaped depending iange lllof thesupporting member. The bar 2O is then swung upwardly for the teeth 23and 24- to engage the line, which in turn will be tightly clampedbetween the bar and the lil-shaped depending flange so that the torce ofthe pull on the line will tend to tighten the engagement of these partstherewith. To adjust the clutch upon the line for shortening orlengthening it, the bar 20 is swung from its engagement with the line byforcing the lugs 26 and 27 thereof downwardly, and the .supportingvmember 10 is then suitable adjusted upon the end portion 29 of theline, al'ter which it is clamped between the bar 2O and the dependingflange 14 as above described.

ln the foregoing description we have embodied the preferred form of ourinvention,

but we do not wish to be understood as limiting ourselves thereto, as weare aware that modifications may be made thereinV without departing tromthe principle, or

sacrificing any of the advantages oic this invention, therefore wereserve to ourselves the right to make such changes as fairly tallwithin the scope -oi the appended claims. Having thus described ourinvention, we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. Aline clutch .of the character described, comprising a substantiallyU-shaped supn Qortino member a )in rovided between the arms of thesupporting member adjacent to the free ends thereof, a bar having ahoolr on one of its ends, the hook being guided over said pin forremovably pivoting the bar to the supporting member so as to be swung toand from said supporting member, said bar having an aperturetherethrough for passage of one end of a line to permit the line to beheld against displacement thereto, a finger projecting upwardly from thebar and movably disposed between the arms of the supporting member sothat this end of the line will press thereagainst, a stop providedbetween the arms of the supporting member for limiting the upwardmovement of the linger, a plurality ot' teeth provided upon the otherend of the bar for coperating with the curved end ot' the supportingmember to allow thesecond end portion of a line to be detachably clampedtherebetween, and lugs extending laterally from said bar to permit thebar to be manually swung upon its pivot.

2. In a line clutch, a supporting member having two parallel armsconnected at one end by a curved portion, and the opposite end thereofbeing connected by a transverse pin, said arms having a secondtransverse pin disposed therethrough intermediate its ends at about thecentral portion thereof and-adapted to serve as a stop, and a co-actingmember having a hook adapted to engage thepin in the end of thesupporting member, said co-acting member being movablyitted between thearms of the support` ing member, and having an aperture to permit a lineto be connected to the co-actproing member, said member having also ajecting finger adapted to extend beyond the second pin between said armsso as to receive the tension of the line, whereby the co-acting memberis caused to bear against the stop provided in the supporting membersaid co-acting member having also a plurality of teeth adapted to engagethe line in the curved portion of the supporting member wherebythe linewill'be held therein, substantially as shown and described.

This specification signed and witnessed this third day of November A. D.1913.

WILLlAM KECKEISSEN. FRANK J. RElLLY.

lWitnesses Ronr. B. ABBOTT, M. DERMODY.

Commissioner of Batents,

